


The Desert Train

by Rainbowfootsteps



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Action, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Blackwatch Era, Blackwatch Genji Shimada, Blackwatch Jesse McCree, Canon, Canon Compliant, Canon-Typical Violence, Developing Friendships, Enemies to Friends, Friendship, Gen, Trains, Violence, basically my headcanon on how jesse loses his arm
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-14
Updated: 2017-12-14
Packaged: 2019-02-14 13:40:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,952
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13009014
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rainbowfootsteps/pseuds/Rainbowfootsteps
Summary: Jesse and Genji are sent on a mission to take out Talon agents on a desert train. Things don't go according to plan.





	The Desert Train

**Author's Note:**

> So guess who just watched Snowpiercer lol :P
> 
> This fic is meant to be canon compliant, and is basically my headcanon of how a certain event in overwatch happened. I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it!
> 
> (also, this isn't GenCree, it's just platonic :0 sorry shippers!)

“Status report.”

“Still waitin’. Should come past any minute now.”

“...”

“Uh, boss.” Jesse slipped his comms device back into its holster. It jostled for space with his gun holster, both leather pouches shifting when he laid back to rest on his motorbike. The sky was lazy blue, light as old denim and clear as the train tracks not far away. The sun was scorching, but he was used to that. New Mexico was his home, after all. He glanced at Genji. His coworker looked much more uncomfortable.

“You look like you’re havin’ fun.” Jesse called. Genji was on the other side of the tracks, standing beside his motorbike. His metallic body gleamed so much in the desert sun that it almost hurt to look at him.

“Shut the fuck up.” Genji scowled back. He gave Jesse a thumbs-down - something he gathered he was meant to take offense at - and resumed his brooding. Why the hell do I bother, Jesse thought. Ever since Genji had joined Blackwatch a month ago, he had refused Jesse’s attempts to initiate conversation. Jokes, teases, even legitimate questions about their current mission - it was either met with a slew of rude Japanese or a cold stare from Genji’s neon eyes. Jesse sighed and sat back up. Why had he even joined if he was going to be such a dick to everyone around him?

A tremor. He barely felt it at first. A low vibration that made pebbles skitter. When he noticed it, Jesse grinned and pulled out his comms device. 

“We have incoming, boss!” He waved his arm back and forth, gesturing to Genji. With a nod, Genji slung a leg over his hovering ride. The rumble was much more prominent now, growling the train’s arrival. Sure enough, a wavy shape had appeared on the horizon, distorted by the shimmering heatwaves. Jesse flickered on the ignition. His spurs jingled when he rested his boots on the sides of the bike. He pushed his stetson down firmly on his head. They were ready.

The buildup was agonising. Faced away from the incoming train, the only sign of its presence was the ever-increasing rumbling. When the first sounds of old metal wheels rolling on tracks came, Jesse gripped his handlebars hard.

Jump on the train. Take out the talon operatives. Take whatever Talon info there is, and wait until the dropship comes to pick them up. The instructions were simple, but Jesse couldn’t stop them drumming in his mind. A habit, he supposed, from being in Deadlock. The thought alone of the time he messed up a job there made his mouth dry. Thankfully, all his thoughts were drowned out by the train. Its thrumming was deafening.

It was like a punch. The train shot past like a bullet. The consequent blast of wind nearly knocked Jesse off his bike and huge plumes of dust kicked up all around him. 

Jesse slammed his foot down. The motorbike started with a roar and quickly built speed. Hot wind wrapped around Jesse’s face, threatening to snatch his hat away. He was nearly going as fast as the train now. It was old fashioned, with wheels instead of hoverpads. Metal carriages rattled so much it was a wonder they hadn’t broken apart yet. Jesse scanned the train’s side. There, a ladder leading to the rood. It was small and rickety - but it would do. Jesse inched his bike closer. He was so close that he could touch the train’s side. He tried not to think about the wheels. If his concentration slipped even for a moment, those steel maws would crush him.

He lifted a hand from the handlebars and reached out to the ladder. A sudden terrain shift sent his bike downwards and Jesse yelped. Fighting his urge to get back on his bike, he let go of it entirely. For a moment he was weightless. His bike plunged down and away from the train, aimless without its rider. Then time started up again and Jesse slammed into the train car. He gritted his teeth and forced his aching fingers to hold on. He pulled his body up and, with an almighty yell, pulled himself up the rest of the ladder.

He hauled himself onto the roof with a groan. Looking up, he saw Genji already on the roof.

“You should be faster.” Genji snapped.

“Not everybody’s a damn cyborg ninja like you.” Jesse grumbled back. Genji glared at him but said nothing. Instead he looked at their surroundings. They were about in the middle of the train, on what was presumably a freight car. The view was incredible; desert rolled for miles behind them. In front of them, mountains loomed. The train’s journey would soon take it through those winding hills and valleys. 

But there was no time to take in the scenery. Jesse ran down the carriage with Genji close behind. With a great leap, the two landed on the next car down. Gabriel had said the Talon agents were going to be in the caboose.

They jumped car after car. Each time was exhilarating, sending a new shot of adrenaline into Jesse’s blood. Whereas Jesse’s landing were heavy, Genji descended silently each time. His footsteps were barely audible, a trait that Jesse still found unsettling. How could metal feet be so quiet?

They were on the caboose.

“The trapdoor.” Genji said. Sure enough, there was a square trapdoor near the end of the roof, with a sturdy handle.

“You open it an’ I’ll drop down, see if I can take some out with Peacekeeper.” Jesse suggested. Genji looked ready to argue, but he just frowned and nodded. With his cybernetic arm he gripped the handle. Jesse unholstered Peacekeeper. His trusty revolver was a comforting weight in his hand.

“3. 2. 1. Now!” Genji wrenched the door open. With one hand on the ledge to steady himself, Jesse jumped down feet first. Before he even touched the ground he was aiming at his first target.

_Bang!_

An Omnic crashed to the floor with a hole in its chest. The carriage was full of humans and Omnics alike, all clad in black. A few had been sitting but now they were on their feet.

Fuck, there were way more of them than Gabriel said.

Genji had jumped into the carriage by the time Jesse took another shot. Another agent staggered backwards, but a different one took their place instantly. Behind Jesse, Genji was a flurry of fists and kicks, deftling avoiding attacks and returning them twice as fast. _Bang!_ Another agent fell - but this time the replacement was prepared. Jesse swore when he saw the pulse rifle pointed at his skull.

No time for strategy. Jesse ducked and charged. He slammed into the agent. A spray of bullets arced up into the roof, a cacophony of bangs and metallic twangs. Falling to the floor roughly the two struggled for a while. Only now did Jesse see the guns lining the walls, and the hands reaching to grab them.

Jesse pulled himself to his feet, slammed his foot into the agent’s head, and moved on.

“There’s too many!” He yelled at Genji. He looked around. He’d been given a wide berth for a while when he’d been tussling on the ground, but that hadn’t lasted. Now a dozen agents encircled him, some equipped with the same type of heavy rifle. They seemed hesitant to shoot; a missed shot would kill one of their comrades in their close quarters. Jesse grinned. He knew just how to get out of this one. Across his chest was a row of capsules on a belt. Now he ripped one off and closed his eyes.

 _Pop!_ A flash so bright it hurt even through his eyelids. The Talon soldiers yelled and, just for a second, were blinded.

“Let’s go!” Jesse yelled. He ran for the carriage door. When he reached it he slammed it open and leapt out. He landed hard on the next carriage and his momentum rolled him forward. There wasn’t enough space for this maneuver however and he ended up slamming into the next carriage’s side. Genji landed gracefully beside him. Jesse grumbled something unsavoury and got to his feet. Genji had shut the door behind them, a shuriken now poking out of the electric lock. It wouldn’t hold for long.

“The roof.” Genji pointed to a ladder on the new carriage. Without waiting for a response, he started to climb it. Jesse wanted to call a snarky comment - but then he heard something crash on the inside of the caboose door. As soon as there was space on the ladder, he hightailed up after Genji. He scrambled onto the roof and pushed himself to his feet. Ahead of them, the train was beginning its ascent up through the mountains.

“Jesse, status report.” Gabriel’s voice crackled through his communicator. Jesse rose it to his mouth, running as he talked.

“There was way too many of ‘em, boss! They had guns, too. I thought this was some sorta small scale thing!”

“That’s what our information suggested… Alright, I’m sending the dropship now. Stay alive for a while longer.”

“We’ll try, boss!” Jessed replied. He leapt onto the next carriage. Genji ran beside him, shurikens poised at the ready. Jesse risked a glance behind them. An agent had pulled himself onto the caboose’s roof, and more were sure to follow. Ahead of them the train had begun its curving ascent. The Blackwatch dropship wouldn’t be able to reach them while the train was flanked by mountains. They’d just have to make it out the other side alive.

 _Ratatatatat!_ A spray of bullets sliced through the air. Jesse slammed his body down and he saw Genji do the same. Hole after hole was ripped into the carriage’s roof, a deadly trail that was racing towards them.

The train car lurched. Thank god, their carriage was turning! The spray of bullets flew wildly off their mark, then stopped entirely when a wall of rock hid the carriages from each other. Jesse scrambled back to his feet. 

“C’mon, let’s keep going!” He said. Genji replied with a nod, and they ran full pelt down the train. Jesse couldn’t hope to keep up with Genji’s augmented speed, but he ran as fast as he could after him.

Unfortunately, a few cars later it became apparent that they were running out of train. The Talon soldiers were right behind them, too - sometimes just before another corner, Jesse would catch a glimpse of them thundering up the train.

It was inevitable. Eventually Genji stopped running and swore loudly. They were at the front of the train. Its tapered front was too sheer to hide on. Jesse turned out, Peacekeeper at the ready. The train was on a stretch of straight track. As the carriages behind them came into view, the Talon agents were revealed.

 _Bang!_ Jesse felled the one nearest to them. There were five more that carried on, remorseless. Jesse aimed again. Click. Shit, he was out of bullets. As he fumbled to reload, Genji poised to strike with his shurikens. 

_Ratatatatat!_

“Aah!” Genji stumbled back. A bullet-sized hole was gouged out of his right arm.

“Genji! Shit, hold on!” Jesse’s heart raced. With the train’s sway and his own panic, he found himself fumbling to reload his gun. He could only watch as the ammunition slipped from his fingers and slowly, sowly, skittered off the side of the train. 

But it looked like the Talon agents had run out of ammo as well. Their pulse rifles, dependant on energy, had gone dim. The black-clad soldiers threw them aside. Now they reached to their hips and pulled something long and dark from their side. Ah. Batons. One, the biggest of the lot, didn’t. At least he had the honour to fist fight.

Jesse gritted his teeth and ran to Genji. He was doubled over, clutching his wounded arm. It looked like the circuits had been damaged, as it hung uselessly from his shoulder.

“Are you alright?” He asked.

“Shut up, I’m fine.” Genji muttered. He rose, back bent slightly and arm still hanging uselessly, but eyes full of anger. Jesse stood with him. The Talon agents were bearing down on them.

The first one attacked. They were an Omnic, with three blood red eyes. They threw a gigantic swing aimed at Jesse’s head. He ducked, threw his arms up, and tackled them. Slamming into a metal body hurt, but it did the trick. The Omnic crashed to the floor. Jesse didn’t linger - he struggled back to his feet. Another baton swung at him. By instinct his arms flew up. The baton slammed down on his forearm, wrenching a pained yell from him. Jesse stumbled backwards. A few metres away, Genji was ducking and dodging like his life depended on it, probably because it did.

Genji jumped back from yet another strike, and let out a roar. He pulled out his wakizashi and sliced at the nearest agent. With a spray of blood, the soldier fell to the floor.

“Out of my way!” A gruff yell came from behind the Talon agents, and they paused immediately. Jesse stumbled back, ending up by Genji’s side. They were both breathing raggedly, hunched over and gripping their own respective wounds. Jesse wondered how much longer they could fight.

From behind the other agents, the largest one approached. He was the one without a baton Jesse had seen earlier. His face was covered in scars and his grin was toothy. Jesse balled his hands into fists.

“Let’s get this done quickly.” The huge man growled. His hands went to his side.

It almost seemed to happen in slow motion. From the man’s side, he unsheathed a long katana. It’s blade gleamed and Jesse’s blood ran cold.

“I think maybe we should just jump off and hope.” Jesse muttered. 

“...Genji?”

Genji was frozen. His red eyes were open wide. His whole body was petrified. He stood still for a moment, then staggered backwards.

“H-Hanzo?” His red eyes seemed unfocused. “No, wait!” His Wakizashi fell to the floor.

The Talon agent laughed.

“How disappointing - I thought this was going to be a challenge.”

He swung his sword.

“Genji, no!”

* * *

It happened too fast for Jesse to think. His muscles seemed to move on their own as he charged into Genji, knocking both of them off the side of the train. They fell off in slow motion. Brown, red and yellow flew past in a blur. Jesse wrapped his arms around Genji.

They hit the ground hard. Something snapped in Jesse’s leg, but he felt no pain. The world was spinning too fast to feel or think about anything. He rolled over and over. Genji slipped from his arms. Jesse was barely aware of how the train’s thundering carriages seemed to be getting closer and closer. 

_Crunch!_ Jesse felt a sting in his left arm. At least he had stopped rolling.

He lay there for a while. The train passed in a plume of dust, leaving him in silence. He stared at the sky. Sure was beautiful, out here in the desert.

“Hhhhhhhhh. J-Jesse.” A synthesised, heavily garbled voice spoke. Jesse’s eyes slid downwards. There was a scratched, dented pile of metal beside him. Oh.

“Genji… Y’alright?” Jesse tried to reach out to him. To his surprise, his left arm seemed to end abruptly just before his elbow. He decided not to think about it.

He could feel himself slipping out of consciousness. Above him, a faint whirring sound - the dropship? - was getting louder and louder. Jesse closed his eyes. Sure was beautiful.

* * *

He woke slowly. His eyelids were unbearably heavy, desperate for him to go back to sleep, but he forced them open. He was in a bright room. The medical bay. Thank god, he was back at base. As his brain woke up a little more, he took in more of his surroundings. There was a vase of marigolds, a distasteful painting in some new style - and Genji, sitting beside his bed.

“Genji?” Jesse’s voice came out quiet and raspy. Genji’s head jerked up like he had been asleep too, and he looked at Jesse.

“You’re awake.” Genji’s voice was slightly distorted, but clearly happy. His right arm was missing; his shoulder simply ended in a metal plate with sockets in it.

“How’d we get back?” Jesse mumbled.

“The dropship came pretty soon after we jumped off the train. You were unconscious for ages - Doctor O’Deorain saved your life, you know. She said if we’d been there twenty minutes longer…” Genji went quiet. Jesse looked down at himself. Most of his body was under a bedsheet, but his arms rested above it. They were covered in cuts and dark with bruises. His left arm ended before the elbow, wrapped in a bandage. He didn’t know quite what to think about that. He’d face it when he wasn’t only half conscious.

“Genji -”

“Thank you.”

“What?” Jesse certainly hadn’t been expecting that. He looked at Genji quizzically. 

“I… I’ve been rude to you. What I’ve been through - what I feel - I shouldn’t take it out on you. It was wrong of me. You saved my life out there, and I’m grateful.”

Jesse raised his eyebrows.

“Well, blow me down with a feather. Now I’ve seen everything.”

“Careful, cowboy, or you’ll get on my bad side again.” Genji said with a chuckle. 

The two sat quietly together for a while longer. Jesse could feel the tug of sleep again, and eventually his tired eyes fluttered closed. This time, however, he fell asleep peacefully, with the knowledge that when he woke up, he would have a friend at his side.

**Author's Note:**

> >u< I hope you liked it! Sorry if there were any mistakes - I typed this from a handwritten version so I was way too over typing to edit it. ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯


End file.
